Monday Musings – Out Cookie! Bad Cookie!

Does anybody besides me find this whole stalking cookie thing creepy? For example, I’m currently thinking about doing a tile backsplash in my kitchen, so I’m surfing sites like Overstock.com for tiles. Sure enough, when I then go to Facebook to see what’s happening in the social network world, guess what pops up in the advertisement column? You guessed it, Overstock.com. But worse, I’m looking at the very items I was just perusing on that site. Now, you probably don’t know this about me but I’m a very private person. I won’t even let apps and stuff track my location on my phone and iPad. I don’t want anybody tracking me. So I’ve been researching how to stop these online companies from cyberstalking me with those invasive cookies. What did I find out? It’s not so easy to stop. The first thing I did was Google, How do online companies know what I’m looking at? I clicked on that link and it told me how to get rid of cookies on my browser. When I went to Settings to do just that, along with cookies from Facebook and Overstock.com, I discovered 5 new cookies from howdoIgetridofcookies.com. (raised eyebrow…swear words).

Even if you select the browser setting that doesn’t allow cookies, companies like Google ignore restrictions and stalk you anyway. So I got rid of Google Chrome and I’m using IE instead. Guess what I just found on my Facebook page, using IE? Assholes.

The DH downloaded something that is supposed to keep companies from adding cookies to your browser. Then he went to Facebook and guess what? He was able to view the tile sample I just sent him through email. F’ers!

To make it worse, if you disable cookies you can’t log into a lot of sites, such as Facebook, your online bank, etc.

This is a problem.

So we dig deeper and discover from the Do Not Track application that the culprit is Facebook. Apparently they track you across the web. Mother F’ers!!! So now I know my enemy. But I still can’t keep their cookies out of my jar.

Don’t worry, I’m going to keep digging.

Declan Sands, intrepid reporter, slipping on my flak jacket and going deep to get the scoop. You can call me Small Throat. #:0)